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Even if he was crap at helping me write my scenes, I’d probably let him stay here for pulling on my heart strings.

“Right, that’s enough touchy-feely stuff.” I shoved my notebook toward him. “Show me where I’m going wrong.”

Devlin eagerly reached for the notebook, his fingers grazing mine as he took it from my hand. A subtle tingle lingered where our skin had touched, but I ignored it, shoving my hand deep into my pocket.

Devlin watched me intensely as if he half expected me to launch myself across the coffee table and tackle him to the ground while sucking his earlobe.

“See?” I said, willing my heart rate to stop its escalation. “Nothing.”

His grin stretched wider, his head shaking slightly in amused disbelief as he flipped through the pages. He finally found the passage he was looking for, and my heart plummeted when I saw just how close to the start of the story it was.

“Alright,” he said, enthusiastically tapping the page. “Mina’s spent the last few years exiled from her coven, completely alone. When she arrives at the pack, she’s bubbly, excited to finally have some company again. But Kieran’s already made itveryclear to his pack that he doesn’t need some‘hermit hag of a witch’to help him find his missing packmate. But the second he lays eyes on her, he’s speechless. And because he’s a stubborn, emotionally repressed alpha, he immediately covers it up with an a-hole attitude. Mina, meanwhile, hashad it. She’s tired of people rejecting her, of always being the outsider. She wasexcitedfor this adventure, and she’snotabout to let some growly wolf-man ruin it for her.”

I stared at Devlin, oddly impressed by just how invested he seemed in my story.

“You nail the tension,” he said, his focus entirely on the notebook. “Right up until the moment Kieran tries to intimidateMina into leaving, pretending he doesn’t need her help, when really, he’s already afraid he’ll fall for her and screw up his arranged marriage.” He glanced up, smirking slightly. “Then you write:‘Kieran strode across the room and loomed over me. He smelled of pine needles and earth, and I wanted to kiss him.’”

I felt my lips press into a thin line.

Yeah... thatdidfall flat. Deadline flat.

“Okay,” Devlin said, an eager grin pulling at his lips. “Pretend that you’re Mina and stand against that wall.”

My heart gave an unexpected flutter. I’d assumed he was just going to talk me through the changes—not act them out.

It’s for the book, Jen. You need help with your scenes, and what better way to improve them than actually drawing from experience?

Swallowing my nerves, I walked over to the wall and pressed my back against it. Mina was based on me—well,pre-prisonme. Andpre-prisonme wouldn’t have been intimidated by a six-foot-three wolf shifter.

I glanced at Devlin. With his broad frame, the sharp angles of his face, and the intensity brewing in his amber eyes, he looked eerily close to how I’d described Kieran. It was surprisingly easy to slip into Mina’s mindset—to imagine that Devlin was just a grumpy, brooding alpha, secretly my fated mate, doing everything in his power to resist me.

Devlin leaned against the chair, his entire demeanor shifting. His features hardened, annoyance flickering across his expression, edged with something else—something sharper, almost like pain. Gone was the incubus who had lit up at the realization that he could touch me without his magic muddling my mind.

In his place sat Kieran.

A scowl settled on his face, his jaw flexing in warning. Then, in a low, rough growl, Devlin said, “Run back to your coven, little witch. I don’t need your help. I don’twantyour help.”

I summoned my inner Mina. She was the sunshine to Kieran’s grumpy—warm, stubborn, and completely unwilling to put up with his shit.

“Exiled,remember?” I said, the words sharp on my tongue. A lump formed in my throat. I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing back the sting of unshed tears.You’re Mina. Mina is strong. Mina wouldn’t let an old wound fester. She wouldn’t care about being exiled anymore.

I took a steadying breath and opened my eyes.

Devlin went completely still, his brows drawing together in quiet concern. I forced a casual shrug, as if it was all just part of the act, praying his senses were still dampened enough not to pick up on the tight knot in my chest. The moment he realized I wasn’t going to fall apart, he exhaled, the tension in his stance shifting. Then, with a flex of his jaw, he slipped effortlessly back into character.

“That’s none of my concern, witch,” he said, his voice gravelly. “I’ll travel much faster in my wolf form. You’ll only hold me back.”

I tilted my head, letting a slow, honeyed smile curve my lips. “You’re right, of course. I would slow you down on your travels.”

Devlin’s shoulders relaxed, the perfect embodiment of Kieran’s relief, as if Mina had finally seen reason, as if she would graciously bow out of the adventure and let him carry on alone.

Then I let my smile sharpen.

“But tell me, pup,” I bit out. “Exactly how do you plan on breaking the curse once you do find your packmate? Hm?Cock your leg and piss all over it?”

I felt my lips curl into a grin. Little emotional wobble aside, I was actually havingfun.

Devlin let out a low, convincing growl, the sound pure, unfiltered alpha irritation. Then, in five long strides, he crossed the room and loomed over me, bracing one hand against the wall above my head. My back pressed instinctively against the wood, my breath hitching as I tilted my chin up to meet his gaze.